wheatonFJR
...
Well, how do you start a story like this?
Many ways I suppose, but I will start with friends. Friends like George/escape, Dave/Niehart, Dave and Sylvia/FastJoyRiders. Other FJR friends as well...many others. But this story starts with friends...If you were to look in this thread...https://www.fjrforum.com/forum//index.php/topic/166067-july-2016-pac-northwest-trip-wheaton-with-wifey/
you would see a list of people responding with help and advice. You would not see the list of people who also messaged me with other very generous offers. You would not see Cole Biehler's offer to give us his bike to use for our journey, you would not see others who offered a place to stay or other assistance. However, you would see, if you looked at who was following that thread, go ahead and look at that now, that Beemerdons was following us from afar. Yep, beemerdons.
The problem with going to FJR meets is that you meet people...strangers/ some of them strange, some of them not, who then become your friends. They do stuff for you that you do not deserve nor merit...just because. This trip was blessed by strangers/friends who gave us many blessings.
This trip, like all trips, also starts out with something else...a longing to head out onto new roads...roads imagined but not discovered yet. I had originally imagined starting in San Francisco and heading north to the Pacific northwest...which in and of itself is an awesome trip. However, my previous experience in Nakusp 2009 was whispering in my ear. It became an ever louder voice, and I realized after a multitude of trip planning iterations that this trip would need to not start out from San Francisco, or even Oregon, but from Seattle and head North into Canada from the Northwest.
So as Louanne and I arrived at SeaTac, we were met by our Black driver in a white car. Dave Black/Niehart of course. We were going to Uber it up to George/Escape's place and get our stuff on my '13 which I had shipped out earlier, but George texted me and said to cancel the Uber...Niehart was picking us up. That was no small gift that he gave us to start this trip...thanks Dave!
Well, we got to our launching off place and George greeted me with my shiny and squeaky clean FJR...with some maintenance that he had done around the sidestand switch. He just looked at me, like all my friends do, shook his head and said, "Mark, Mark, Mark...".
So I'm there moving stuff around on my bike, taking some stuff out of some bags and add stuff to others, hardly able to as I've been up since midnight PDT for an early morning flight out of Greenville. Dave and George offered help, I was a little loopy, but was finally good to go.
Escape and Piehart escorted us out of town that Friday afternoon, making sure we left...but really making sure we got off to a good start on our way down to St. Helens which was our first destination the next day...we ventured and bunked down at an EconoLodge in Buckley. It was actually a decent motel iffen yer just looking for the basics. I recommend it.
As we were on our way, Niehart joined up with us again and took us to a cafe for supper that he has frequented. It was outstanding. As I was with the famous Niehart, I ordered pie to go along with my sandwich.
The pie was not Texas sized, it was ALASKA sized!
Take a minute to study the proportions of that strawberry-rhubarb pie, which was heated of course...sidled up to a continent sized scoop of vanilla ice cream. Go ahead...see how big it is compared to the spoon.
That pie and ice cream was this trip, all perfectly tasting, and so much to swallow. It kept going, one view or scene after another...tasting as good the whole time as the first bite.
Well, I needed Louanne to help me finish off that pie and ice cream, just like I need her in so many things in life. But it was my pleasure to share this trip with her, one bite after another...
Many ways I suppose, but I will start with friends. Friends like George/escape, Dave/Niehart, Dave and Sylvia/FastJoyRiders. Other FJR friends as well...many others. But this story starts with friends...If you were to look in this thread...https://www.fjrforum.com/forum//index.php/topic/166067-july-2016-pac-northwest-trip-wheaton-with-wifey/
you would see a list of people responding with help and advice. You would not see the list of people who also messaged me with other very generous offers. You would not see Cole Biehler's offer to give us his bike to use for our journey, you would not see others who offered a place to stay or other assistance. However, you would see, if you looked at who was following that thread, go ahead and look at that now, that Beemerdons was following us from afar. Yep, beemerdons.
The problem with going to FJR meets is that you meet people...strangers/ some of them strange, some of them not, who then become your friends. They do stuff for you that you do not deserve nor merit...just because. This trip was blessed by strangers/friends who gave us many blessings.
This trip, like all trips, also starts out with something else...a longing to head out onto new roads...roads imagined but not discovered yet. I had originally imagined starting in San Francisco and heading north to the Pacific northwest...which in and of itself is an awesome trip. However, my previous experience in Nakusp 2009 was whispering in my ear. It became an ever louder voice, and I realized after a multitude of trip planning iterations that this trip would need to not start out from San Francisco, or even Oregon, but from Seattle and head North into Canada from the Northwest.
So as Louanne and I arrived at SeaTac, we were met by our Black driver in a white car. Dave Black/Niehart of course. We were going to Uber it up to George/Escape's place and get our stuff on my '13 which I had shipped out earlier, but George texted me and said to cancel the Uber...Niehart was picking us up. That was no small gift that he gave us to start this trip...thanks Dave!
Well, we got to our launching off place and George greeted me with my shiny and squeaky clean FJR...with some maintenance that he had done around the sidestand switch. He just looked at me, like all my friends do, shook his head and said, "Mark, Mark, Mark...".
Escape and Piehart escorted us out of town that Friday afternoon, making sure we left...but really making sure we got off to a good start on our way down to St. Helens which was our first destination the next day...we ventured and bunked down at an EconoLodge in Buckley. It was actually a decent motel iffen yer just looking for the basics. I recommend it.
As we were on our way, Niehart joined up with us again and took us to a cafe for supper that he has frequented. It was outstanding. As I was with the famous Niehart, I ordered pie to go along with my sandwich.
The pie was not Texas sized, it was ALASKA sized!
Take a minute to study the proportions of that strawberry-rhubarb pie, which was heated of course...sidled up to a continent sized scoop of vanilla ice cream. Go ahead...see how big it is compared to the spoon.
That pie and ice cream was this trip, all perfectly tasting, and so much to swallow. It kept going, one view or scene after another...tasting as good the whole time as the first bite.
Well, I needed Louanne to help me finish off that pie and ice cream, just like I need her in so many things in life. But it was my pleasure to share this trip with her, one bite after another...
